This is Our Story
by vrivasfl
Summary: Rikku is able to save Tidus from falling of the salvage ship. She gets him to Luca, but now she has to make sure he he makes out okay. This had become their story, but a summoner and her guardians may change that. Will Tidus accept his destined position defending Yuna, or does his loyalty to his one and only friend in Spira prove stronger than destiny?
1. Okay, leave it to me I'll get you to

Chapter 1: Okay, leave it to me. I'll get you to Luca, promise!

There was chaos everywhere. From the moment the scaly fin made its appearance above water, a steady stream of Al-bheds were rushing out from below deck and manning whatever station needed to be manned. Tidus just stood in the middle of it, wondering if there was anything he could be doing, or if there was anything he was expected to be doing.

Tidus didn't see Rikku anywhere, and the fin was causing the waves to swell, which in turn caused the ship to rock furiously. Tidus looked back, only to see that the fin had once again submerged. He ran the edge, his hands white-knuckling the railing as he desperately searched the waters for any sign that the fin was to return. Sure enough, a torrent of water reintroduced the fin. The reappearance of the fin flooded the deck of the ship, and the sheer force ripped Tidus from the railing and washed him to the edge of the ship.

Desperately, Tidus grasped at the air, hoping to grab onto something, but his descent into the dark unknown seemed all but certain. In seconds, he was flying off the edge of the ship, reaching up into the air in a vain attempt to prevent his descent.

Tidus failed to grasp anything, but something grasped him. Rather, someone. Tidus looked up to see that familiar red jumpsuit holding onto his wrist with one hand and holding on the railing with the other, and her grip on the latter was precarious. Even with a mask one Tidus could plainly see the pain and effort Rikku was expending just to keep a grip on both.

Tidus looked around. It was dark, but he could see a window near his leg. He swung once and managed to get a footing and grabbed onto the ledge with his free right hand. Rikku released Tidus and immediate transferred the hand on the railing and pulled herself up. Now safely on deck, Rikku used both hands to help Tidus make the climb back on deck with her.

Tidus breathed a sigh of relief as he sat down and rested along one of the machines. He was out of breath, and he sat silently as he surveyed the deck. Everything was quiet now. Sin was gone, at least for the moment. Four Al-Bhed were on deck, including Rikku. They all still appeared to be defensive, as if the danger was still present.

Rikku came back to where Tidus was sitting. "It'll come back," she said.

"What do we do?"

"We don't do anything," said replied. "This is a salvage ship. We don't have anywhere near the technology we would need to defend outside, and we certainly can't outrun it. We just need to sit tight until we're sure Sin has left."

"So we just sit up here and hope for the best?" He asked with a touch of fear back in his voice.

"Not here," she said. "Certainly not up here, not after that little episode on the ledge. If Sin comes back, on deck is the last place you want to be. Come on. Brother doesn't want me to bring you inside, but I'm sure there is somewhere I can stash you where he won't see you. At least you'll be out of the way. I still have to convince him to drop you off in Luca, anyways."

Rikku pulled him up by the sleeve and led him to the door. She pressed a button on the side that Tidus had not previously seen and led him down the stairs and through a narrow corridor and finally to an elevator. The doors shut behind them, and the elevator shaft was plunged into near total darkness. "Yeah. That happens," she said without having to be asked. "After a while, you get to know where all the button are." She pressed something, and the elevator began to slowly move. Tidus couldn't really tell how small the elevator was. He knew he was standing near the wall, and he knew he was starting particularly close to Rikku. He wasn't sure if she was standing so close for a reason, or because the elevator was just that small.

The elevator stopped, and opened up to another corridor, this one with several doors on either side. "These are the cabins," she said. "I don't think there are any empty on this ship." She paused and mused over what the next move should be. "Just in case, you should probably just hide out in my cabin."

"Your brother won't mind you having a boy in your room?"

"I have boys in my room all the time," she replied immediately. It was only after she spoke that she processed the question and came forward with a more thought-out answer. "That didn't come out right. What I meant to say was, my brother isn't the boss of me. Now just stay put here and I'll be right back."

Rikku led him into the first door on the right and closed the door behind her. The room was dimly lit, and there was nothing inside except a bed and a chest. Tidus could see nothing but darkness though the tiny window. He just sat on the bed, looking back and forth between the chest on the ground and the door, half-expecting Rikku to come barging in at any moment. Finally, he laid down and made himself comfortable.

He thought about the events of the day and just how close he came to losing his life at Sin's hand. Then again, he had been completely in Sin's grasp when he attacked Zanarkand, and it just dropped him off in the middle of nowhere. Maybe that's what Sin had come for. "Did he come for me?" Tidus openly mused. "Auron would probably think so. Then again, I never really understood anything that guy was saying."

Tidus pushed all of his thoughts about Auron and Sin as far away from his consciousness as he possibly could. As he did so, he slowly began to drift off into a nice, well-deserved slumber.

He dreamt. He dreamt that he was back in Zanarkand, back on his houseboat with dozens of adorning fans just camped out waiting for him to step out as he did every morning at just this time. It was all a very well-prepared act. He knew they were there and he knew they were waiting for him. He would just step out as if he were on a leisurely stroll, and he would be shocked at the swarm of fans trying to get close to him without actually stepping foot onto his property. Of course, Tidus would greet them and, if he felt like it, come on over and sign some autographs. He was just kind and generous that way.

This morning, Auron was there. He was standing at the room, preventing Tidus from stepping out and greet his adoring fans. "I need to go outside," Tidus insisted.

"You can't," he replied. "It's not safe outside. Don't you remember what happened last time you were on the deck of a ship?"

"You mean the Al-Bhed ship?" Tidus asked. "That was so long ago. I barely even remember it."

"You fell."

"Rikku caught me."

"You fell," he repeated, as if he had not heard Tidus.

"Hey!" This time, it was Rikku's voice. His eyes popped open and he suddenly felt a piercing headache. He quickly saw why. He was on the floor.

"You fell," Rikku said. Tidus just looked at her as he rubbed the back of his head. "Come on," he continued as she helped him up. "Sin is gone for now. Brother thinks you're bad luck, so he's agreed to drop you off in Luca."

Tidus nodded and followed Rikku back into the elevator. The lights were on this time, and Tidus could plains see that the elevator could comfortably fit at least ten people. They rode up to the deck and Rikku led him to the railing. The sunrise was a bewitching sight.

"You don't get to see the sunrise like this in Zanarkand," Tidus said before remembering. "Oh. I'm not supposed to talk about Zanarkand, right?"

"Right," Rikku scolded. "Remember. It's some kind of holy place. At least that's what Yevon says."

"Who's Yevon?"

"You don't know?" Tidus was getting irritated about just how much he didn't know. "Well, I don't know all that much about it either, but I know enough to know it's not a who. It's a what. Yevon is a belief. Everyone in Spira believes in Yevon. Everyone except the Al-Bhed."  
"Why not?"

"Because Yevon doesn't allow the use of machina. It says it brings strife. That it brings Sin."

"Machina?"

"Yeah. Machina. The machines. All of this. That thing we activated. That's all machina. All forbidden by Yevon. The Al-Bhed think that's just superstitious nonsense. Machina makes everything better. We can tell that Sin is gone because we have machina that detects movement in the water."

"How did Sin sneak up on us, then?"

"That was my fault," a male voice said from behind them. Tidus turned and saw the young man standing by the door. "Name's Buddy," he said. "I was supposed to be watching the radar. I left my station to grab a snack."

"Buddy."

"Hey," he defended. "I was hungry. You can't blame a guy for being hungry."

"I can and I do," Rikku replied. "Speaking of which, shouldn't you be watching the radar now?"

"I got someone covering for me this time. So, we're going to Luca?"

"No," Rikku said. "He's going to Luca. We have work to do."

"Wait," Tidus replied. "You're not coming with me?"

"I thought you knew," Rikku replied with a hint of remorse in her voice. "I guess I shouldn't assume anything given your condition. Yevon forbids the use of machina and we use machina. Ergo, Yevon forbids the Al-Bhed. We're not exactly welcome on the mainland. You'd get into trouble just being around us."

"You're exaggerating," Buddy said. "Spira isn't a nice place to be if you're an Al-Bhed. That's true, but Luca is different. It's got blitzball."

"How does blitz make it different?"

"Blitzball is the one thing that united all peoples of Spira," Rikku explained. "The Al-Bhed are treated as equals, but only for blitzball. Buddy of all people should know that it's the off season. The Al-Bhed are no more welcome during the off season than anywhere else in Spira."

"Yeah but there's a tournament coming up real soon. The Psyches are coming in. We'd only be early by a few days."

"Ignore him," Rikku insisted. "I'm telling you, you'd have a better chance of finding someone you know or joining a blitzball team if you're not seen hanging out with Al-Bhed."

Tidus didn't reply. What Rikku was saying made sense, as much as anything made sense to him. He didn't understand why the Al-Bhed her persecuted by Yevon because they used machina, but if he needed to stay away from them in order to be accepted in Luca, that made sense. Still, Rikku has been the only person he'd been able to confide in. Rikku was Tidus' only friend in Spira. If Zanarkand was really destroyed 1000 before as Riku said, that would make her his only friend in the world. He wasn't about to be dropped off with no clue where to go, not without a friend.

"Where will you go?" Tidus asked.

"Back Home," she replied.

"Where's that?"

"On our island. Since the Al-Bhed aren't welcome on the mainland, my father united the Al-Bhed and built a machina city in the middle of the desert. I was born there. It's a really amazing place."

"Why can't I go there?"

Rikku and Buddy exchanged quick glances, and now Tidus had become slightly worried. Rikku continued. "I was born in Home, but my father wasn't. He grew up in Luca, and he didn't like it. He thinks the Al-Bhed and the other peoples of Spira should stay separated. It best for everyone. Home is for the Al-Bhed and the Al-Bhed only. He'd kill me if I even told you where it was."

Tidus didn't reply to this. He turned back and watched the horizon grow brighter. As he looked out into the distance, a city began to rise up from the waters. In seconds, he could see the harbor as the ship advanced.

"I hope Brother remembers that we're only allowed to dock at number four," Rikku openly mused. The ship began to slow down as its docking position. Tidus clenched the railing as the ship jolted slightly as it made contact with the dock before finally setting at rest.

"We're going to wait a little bit before we can let you out," Rikku explained. "Yevon begrudgingly allows use to bring out machina ships into the harbor, but they'll be damned if we bring any contraband with us off the ship. The Al-Bhed are required to wait on the ship until Warrior Monks can be sent to inspect everyone that comes off the ship."

"Warrior Monks?"

"Yevon's personal army," Rikku replied disparagingly.

"Okay," Tidus replied. He wanted to ask more. What did a belief need a personal army for, anyways? He figured that question would just lead to an additional two questions, which, in turn, would lead to two more question each. It wasn't worth the effort, and none of it pertained to what Tidus wanted to do at that exact moment. "In the meantime, since it doesn't look like I'm getting off the ship in the near future, what do I have to do to get you to come with me to Luca?"

That Tidus even asked seemed to amuse Rikku. She smiled and stifled a little chuckle. "I'm not going. It's nothing against you, Tidus. Seriously, I would go if I didn't think it would cause you trouble to be seen with an Al-bhed. I want to go to Luca with you."

"You do?"

"Yeah." Rikku hesitated before continuing that thought. "Luca is an odd place, and I want to make sure that you make out alright." Tidus just looked at her to see if there was anything else she wanted to add to her answer. "You have an interesting story. It's only natural that I want to see how it turns out."

"So come with me."

"I don't want to influence how the story ends."

"You already have," he pointed out. "If it weren't for you, I'd be dead on the floor of some long forgotten ruin in the middle of the ocean. If it weren't for you, your brother might have thrown me overboard sooner. If it weren't for you, Sin would have dragged me into the water, and who knows what would have happened then. Whether you like it or not, my story is not my story anymore. This is our story now, Rikku."

Rikku didn't like that answer. She replied with a scoff and turned away. Tidus could plainly see the reason why it bugged her so much. It was scrawled in bold print on her countenance. Rikku really did want to see how the story ended, but she didn't want to be involved in the story. It was as if being a part of some adventure was too great of a responsibility for her. She would read about great adventures, and if she dared to, she would even imagine herself involved.

Now, however, Rikku had the opportunity to participate in an adventure that would be otherwise left untold. How could she possibly pass up such an opportunity? And for such a weak reason as the one she gave? So what if her presence would alter the course of the story? That's just what the story called for. If a human with no memory gets into trouble because his only friend and confidant is a teenage Al-bhed girl, then so be it.

She turned back to him. Tidus was lazily leaning on the edge and looking at her, as if he had been waiting for her to turn around and change her mind. "This is not my story," she replied. Tidus tried to hide his surprise. He really did think she wouldn't pass up this opportunity. She turned back around and returned down below.

It was at this juncture that Tidus remembered that Buddy was still on deck. "You want to come with me?" Tidus asked despondently.

"Would if I could," he replied with a sincerely cadence of disappointment in his voice. I'm sort of in the middle of something back Home. Plus, Brother is going to want my help on the machina we just activated at the ruins. Looks like you're going this one solo."

Buddy left him and returned below deck. Now alone, Tidus looked out at what he could see of Luca. The dock was nothing special. It didn't have all the technological advances that the docks back home in Zanarkand had, but Tidus was beginning to expect that. He craned his head up to get a better look of the building in front of him that all the docks appeared to be encircling. No other building even came close to its grandeur. It had to be the blitz stadium.

Tidus' admiration of the blitz stadium, pedestrian in form but nonetheless admirable, took all of his attention. He missed the arrival of the Warrior Monks in his peripheral vision and had to be snapped out of his trance by a loud and annoyed grunt. Tidus looked down and saw three men, two dressed in a white armor and a third with a beard dressed in red. The man in red was standing at the forefront and was motioning with his hands for Tidus to come down.

Tidus wasn't sure how the man expected him to get down. The distance from the deck to the ground below certainly was an easily jumpable distance, but he was certain there was some simpler way to get down that they were expecting. The man in red was getting annoyed and just started grunting and pointing in the general direction to Tidus' right. It dawned on Tidus as this point that the man wasn't talking because he assumed Tidus was an Al-bhed and wouldn't understand him if he spoke. He thought about ending the man's struggle, but watching him try to pantomime instructions while keeping his cool was amusing.

Tidus looked in the direction he was pointing and saw where the gangplank would come out and a button on the wall nearby that would activate it. Tidus simply pretended he didn't see it and just pointed in the same direction. The man in red kept pointing with an expression on his face as if to say, "Yes! There! This button right there! Press that button, you stupid heathen!"

Tidus just kept kept pantomiming ignorance. "This button?"

"Yes! Just press it already!"

"You sure?"

"Yes!"

"This one?"

"Yes!"

"This one right here?"

"Yes! Oh for the love of Yevon, press the button already!"

Tidus kept his index finger just inches from the button, and then suddenly withdraw his hand and shrugged, as if to say, "Sorry. I'm new here. I'm not allowed to touch anything without a supervisor present."

The man in red clearly had enough. He threw his hands up in frustration and walked away. His subordinated, momentarily unsure as to what they were expected to do, followed their commanding officer, leaving the dock deserted. Tidus was particularly pleased with himself, but realized that he probably wasn't going to get away with making fun of the guy.

"Well, if I'm on my own, I might as well get started." Tidus took a few steps back and gave himself a running start. At the ledge, he vaulted himself over the railing and landed softly on dry land. "Goodbye, Rikku," he said softly as he began to walk away from the ship and towards the blitzball stadium. "I wish I could have gotten the opportunity to know you better."

Tidus began to walk leisurely down the pathway and as he entered the next dock area, the area became more populated. Most looked like normal humans dressed in normal, albeit rural and basic, clothing. Okay, there was one huge blue, cat-like thing with a horn at the dock after that, but Tidus decided he would wait for another day to learn about a new race. Now, he just needed to find someone he knew.

It wasn't long before someone he recognized came around the corner, but it wasn't someone he was expecting to run into again. The man in red was without his subordinates, but he was no less furious at seeing Tidus off the ship without inspection. "Stop! Don't move!" he shouted as he began to run towards him.

"Yeah right," Tidus mumbled under his breath as he took off. Being the more athletic of the two by far, it was easy to outrun him. Tidus was leaping over boxes and around people at a graceful pace while the man in red continued to trip over his own feet. Tidus though he was getting away until his subordinates popped up in front of him. Tidus cut left and found himself in a square. He looked up and saw the entrance to the stadium at the top of the stairs. He climbed up, but another warrior monk awaited him at the top of the stairs. The man in red had caught up and waited for him at the bottom of the stairs.

"Game over, heathen," the man in red growled. "Now you can come the easy way or the hard way, but just so you know, I really love the hard way." The man began to climb the stairs and the remaining monks were closing in on him.

Then he heard a voice. "There you are!" Everyone looked as a spritely joyful teenage girl came skipping up the steps and latched on to Tidus' arm. The girl was dressed in green shorts and a light orange T-shirt. A pair of goggles were resting around her neck and her bright blonde hair was in a ponytail. Tidus couldn't believe that this was the girl hiding underneath that red jumpsuit.

"I told you to meet me at the cafe."

"Excuse me," the man in red said. "Do you know this man?"

"Of course. He's my boyfriend. We're here for the tournament. Tell him, Tidus."

The man in red looked squarely at Tidus, waiting for an answer. Rikku nudged him forcefully, pulling him out of his state of muteness. "Yeah. I'm her boyfriend. We're in town for the tournament."

The man in red stepped closer and looking deeply into Tidus' eyes. visibly upset at not seeing what he had expected to see. Angry, the man in red just stormed off. His subordinates quickly followed.

"That was a stupid thing you did!" Rikku shouted in a whisper. "A stranger in a strange land, and what's the first thing you do? Piss of the authorities! What is wrong with you? Don't tell me. You wanted me to come to your rescue. Now I have to stay. I'm right. Right?"

"No," Tidus replied, "but for the record, it did work."

Rikku just smiled and held back another chuckle. "Well, I guess I'm staying. Brother probably left, anyways. It's just as well. You said yourself. This is our story."

Tidus just smiled. Two two of them, from the top of the stairs, looked out at the rest of Luca without a clue what their next move was going to be.


	2. Would you rather join some backwater

Chapter 2: Would you rather join some backwater team and live some quaint life in the village, or would you like to return to the stardom you apparently believe you had in your imaginary Zanarkand?

Rikku and Tidus were sitting on the terrace level of a cafe towards the residential district of Luca. Tidus looked down to the plaza, still trying to accept everything around him as the new normal. Tidus ordered a salad off the menu simply because he wasn't sure about anything else. Some of the words were familiar, but others were not. Even for the words that he did recognize, how could he be sure that a steak in Spira was the same as a steak in Zanarkand? He could ask Rikku, but how would he go about explaining what a steak is in Zanarkand?

Rikku had a sandwich of some sort, but the meat was unfamiliar to him. Tidus did not want to ask, just in case the answer was more worrisome than the question. Rikku ate it ravishly, so it must have been delicious to her. The salad was mostly familiar. Tidus was able to identify most of what was in the bowl, and the few things that were unfamiliar seemed edible. They wouldn't serve it if it were harmful, after all, and there appeared to be no reason to think he couldn't eat what everyone else in Spira was eating.

Could he eat everything that Rikku ate? She was an Al-Bhed, but with the obvious exception of the swirled iris, there appeared to be nothing different between a human and an Al-Bhed. Were they really a completely different species? Or were they just a different ethnic group? Rikku defined them as different species, but that was just one girl's opinion, a girl who grew up isolated on an island.

It was at this point that Tidus realized Rikku didn't have swirls in her eyes. "Your eyes!" The reaction was louder than Tidus had expected it to be. It just came out quite naturally.

Rikku stopped mid-bite in order to survey just how many people noticed Tidus' outburst. A few people sitting nearby had heard him, but they were all slowly returning to their own meals as soon as they saw nothing else was going to happen.

Once Rikku was sure everyone had stopped eavesdropping, Rikku replied. "Contact lenses."

"Oh."

"Anyone with a brain cell can tell I'm wearing contact lenses, so it's not that great of a disguise, but I figured warrior monks have half a brain cell at most, so it did its job. It'll work as long as no one tries to look hard enough."

"You should take them out."

"Why?"

"I don't care if people know you're Al-Bhed."

"Trust me. You're only saying that because you don't know what it's like to be caught with an Al-Bhed, let alone caught being an Al-Bhed. I am doing both you and me a favor."

Tidus didn't agree, but he didn't think it prudent to make a big deal about it. It was her decision, after all. Tidus looked back out on the plaza. He could see a little boy and a little girl tossing a blitzball back and forth, and it reminded him that he still needed to decide on his next move.

"Ok, Star Player," Rikku said playfully from across the table. "If you're as good of a blitzer as you claim to be, someone here ought to know you. No one has recognized you yet, so maybe you can't actually play blitzball like you think you can."

"Hey!" Tidus instinctually defended. "I may not know a lot about what's going on around here, but my skills are indisputable. I'm not from around here. That's why no one recognizes me."

"In that case, you should join a blitz team."

"Fine. Buddy said that the Al-Bhed have a blitz team. If you put in a good word for me, I can get on the team, and I'll be their star player in no time."

Rikku appeared to ponder Tidus' bombastic claim before taking another bite of her sandwich. "No," she finally replied. "The Al-Bhed won't take a human player. For several reasons, the racial divisions in Spira are pretty rigid. Out of six teams, three of them are racially-based, and you're not getting on any of them, no matter how hard you try."

"I'm guesses one of those races are the blue, furry cat-like things I saw on the docks."

"That's a Ronso," Rikku explained. "Keep in mind that they don't particularly like being called blue, furry cat-like things. The Guado don't like being called man/plant hybrids, either, should you encounter one in the future."

"Ok," Tidus continued as he counted on his fingers. "The Al-Bhed, Ronso, and Guado make three teams, so the remaining three teams must be human, right?"

"Right. The Aurochs from Besaid, the Beasts from Kilika, and the Goers from right here in Luca."

This made Tidus' eyes light up. "There's a team right here in Luca? Well, what are we waiting for? They may not know me now, but by this time tomorrow, they'll never forget me." Tidus jumped up, leaving the remainder of his salad on the table and rushed out of the cafe. Rikku hurriedly left what appeared to her to be a proper amount of gil on the table before grabbing her sandwich and joining Tidus out on the square.

"Ok," Tidus began as he exited the cafe. "The Goers. Where do we find them?"

"This is their city," she said. "It's a port city with water everywhere. They could be training anywhere."

"Where do the Psyches train?"

"We have a sphere pool at Home. The machina we use allow us to fill the pool in under five minutes. I doubt they're training here, though. It takes almost an hour to fill this pool with the primitive technology they use."

"So they're at a beach," Tidus replied.

"How do you figure?"

"Where I'm from, every team in the major league conference have their own sphere pool, but the for the teams in the minor leagues, they practice on the beach."

"The Goers wouldn't share their practice space with a bunch of tourists."

"A private beach, then. Is there a resort of some kind in Luca?"

Rikku though for a few seconds. "Papillon. If they're anywhere, that's where they would be."

"Then lead the way, Rikku."

Rikku took a hard left and led Tidus back through the main plaza and down a street that led them toward the beach and the rich part of town. Tidus was rather amazed at the architecture in Luca. Sure, it was no match for Zanarkand, where it was not uncommon for skyscrapers to exceed one-hundred stories, and not only in downtown or in the financial district, either. Shopping centers, hotels, and apartment building regularly straddled the clouds. In contrast, the beachfront hotels they were encountering were probably around twenty stories at most. The Stadium was by far the tallest structure in Luca. Yet, Tidus was amazed.  
"Is Luca special?" Tidus asked.

"Huh?" was the only reply Rikku could muster. The question made absolutely no sense to her. "I'm not sure what you mean."

"I mean," Tidus replied,with a bit of difficulty in phrasing, "Is Luca protected from Sin? The stadium. The hotels. The number of people. It feels like people are less concerned about Sin attacking that I would imagine, especially considering what Sin did to Zanarkand." Rikku shot him a quick look to remind him not to say Zanarkand so liberally while in Luca. Tidus facially apologized.

"There is nothing special about Luca," she began as they entered through the double doors leading into the fancy lobby of the Papillon. "But the stadium is here. The Crusaders risk their lives to protect the stadium. It's one of the few things that brings joy to the people of Spira. It's worth being hopeful about. It's worth protecting. At least, I think so."

"I think so, too," Tidus responded. He wasn't really sure why he said it. Would he have risked his life to protect the blitz stadium in Zanarkand, to defend people's enjoyment? He didn't think so, but then again, there were hundreds of ways to have fun in Zanarkand, and there were far more than just one stadium. If one were damaged, they would just play in a different stadium. The stadium in Luca, however, was the only stadium in Spira. What would happen if it were destroyed? What would that do to the morale of people living under constant threat of annihilation? No. The stadium needed to be defended at all cost. That was a worthy goal.

Rikku had moved onto a new topic as she pointed out to the beach on the other end of the hotel lobby. "There they are." Tidus took a few stepped forward and looked through the glass doors that led out to the beach. They were too far to tell them apart, but their uniforms, equipment, and formation left no doubt in Tidus' mind. They were a blitz team.

Rikku could not have held him back if she tried, which she made a vain late attempt to do. He was marching out to the public beach, throwing Rikku for a loop and completely off balance. Did he really have it in his head that he could just saunter out onto the beach and ask to join a blitz team? The Luca Goers, no less? He's more than just foggy from Sin's toxin. He's insane.

Rikku cautiously followed and Tidus marched with purpose to the end of the lobby. By the time he reached the double glass doors, he had the attention of everyone in the lobby, including the physically imposing doorman who was also marching with purpose to the door, his purpose being to impede Tidus' purpose. Tidus placed his hand on the door and began to pull, but the door man reached him and pushed the door shut. The sudden push caused a great sound. If anyone in the room weren't paying attention before, they certainly were now. More importantly, the slamming of the door caught the attention of two of the blitzers outside. They were both young women, and they were standing on the stairs rather than further down on the beach.

Tidus looked at the girls as they looked at him interacting with the imposing doorman. Both were brunettes wearing the same blue uniforms. The girl on the left, whose hair was in pigtails, seemed rather amused by the action. She had a broad smile on her face, clearly looking forward to seeing how this would end. The girl on the right, in contrast, looked bored. Her hair in a ponytail and her arms crossed, she couldn't wait for it to be over so they could get back down to the beach and practice with the rest of the team.

Tidus smiled at the girls and winked at them. This amused the pigtailed one, and caused the ponytailed one to roll her eyes. The doorman pulled Tidus back by the shoulders and made him look into his eyes. "That is a private beach," he said calmly, but with a threatening tone. " The tourist beach is a ten minute walk down the street. Unless you are a guest of one of the Goers, you don't have access to this one."

"That's exactly what I am," Tidus quipped with undeserved confidence. Rikku could only shake her head as she watched the painful exchange. The doorman was not convinced. "No seriously." He continued. "You see the mean-looking one out there? The one with her arms crossed? We're kind of going steady, if you know what I mean."

The doorman quickly glanced to see which girl Tidus was referring to before looking back at him. "That one is married." Rikku sighed audibly.

Tidus cleared his throat. "Sorry. I meant the other one."

"What's her name?"

"Name?"

"That's what I'm asking. If you two are going steady, you should know her name."

"Well, I might have been getting ahead of myself. Steady isn't exactly the right word for it. We've gone out a couple of times."

"And you don't know her name?"

"There might have been some alcohol involved"

"That one doesn't drink."

"Well, don't you just know everything?" Tidus didn't wait for a reply. He slipped out of his grasp and ran through the glass doors with the doorman running close behind, with Rikku and spectators from the lobby bringing up the rear. Tidus ran passed the girls and made it onto the sand before being tackled by the doorman.

"What is going on here?" An irritated voice shouted. From the ground with his arms pinned behind him, Tidus managed to arc his neck up to to see that the owner of the annoyed voice was approaching. He was wearing the same blitz uniform as the rest. He had fire red hair and a sour look on his face. Behind him stood two other Goers, they black guy to his left and the blond guy to his right.

"Sorry Bickson," the doorman said. "This one got passed me. I'll make sure he never comes back."

"You do that," he replied as he turned back toward the shore.

The doorman pulled Tidus to his feet and began to drag him off. "Hey Bickson!" Tidus shouted as he spat out the sand in his mouth. "I'm a blitzer! I bet I'm a better blitzer than you!"

"You think I'm going to dignify that with a response?" He shouted back.

"You just did!"

This irked Bickson even more. "What makes you think you're so great?"

"I've been a blitzer all my life. Even better than my old man! Tell him to let me go, and I'll show you what I mean."

Bickson scoffed. "I don't know you or your father, but I'll tell you what. I think this is going to be funny. I'll give you a shot. Raudy!" A tall player who had been sitting off to the side, the goalie undoubtedly, jogged over and stood next to Bickson. Bickson returned to addressing Tidus. "Here's the deal. You get one shot. If you can kick the ball from the water, across the beach, and pass Raudy between the bannisters of the stairs, I will officially be impressed. Then we can talk about whatever you came to talk about,. Do we have a deal?"

"Deal," Tidus shouted without hesitation, Bickson motioned for the doorman to let him go. Tidus walked down the stars as Raudy took his position at the base of the stairs. The girls were standing to the right. The guys were standing to the left. The spectators, including Rikku, were at the stop of the stairs.

Tidus waded into the water as everyone on the beach stood motionless and deathly quiet. Bickson kicked the blitzball out to Tidus in the water. Tidus knew exactly what he was going to do: his signature shot, the Sphere Shot. Everyone in Zanarkand loved that shot. It never failed to score and it never failed to impress. Technology or not, the Sphere Shot was the same, and it would have the same effect of putting this big-mouthed Goers in their place.

Tidus rested the ball and dove into the pure water. Tidus swam deep and came up like a rocket. Tidus pushed to ball high in the air with his head and proceeded to arch his back in preparation for the kick. As the ball started to succumb to gravity and come back down, Tidus channeled his attention and energy on his leg and fired a perfect kick. As Tidus came back down into the water, he could see the ball firing straight toward the staircase. The shot couldn't have been better if he tried.

Tidus landed back in the water and immediately swam back up to see the fruits of his labor. Instead, Tidus was greeted with the only sight his never expected to see. At the base of the staircase, Raudy stood with his feet firmly planted on the ground and the blitzball motionless in his hands. Tidus wanted to sink away into oblivion. How could the shot fail? This was unchartered territory for Tidus. Facing the music on the beach was scarier than the ruins he almost died in before the Al-Bhed found him.

His face full of childish glee, Bickson was urging him back into the sand. Slowly, Tidus complied. As Tidus pulled himself back onto the beach, Bickson came over and put his arm around his shoulders. "What did you say you name was?"

"I didn't."

"Smart move. Now I can't go around spreading the embarrassing news." Bickson waved the doorman back, who approached and took Tidus by the arm. "Just kick him to the curb. He's not even work taking to jail." Bickson laughed and return to the beach and Tidus was dragged back up the stairs. Tidus passively accepted his fate until he caught Rikku's look. She seemed disappointed. Is this how it ends?

"Hey Bickson!" Tidus shouted. "You want to know my name? I'm Tidus, star player of the Zanarkand Abes!" Now he had everyone's attention.

"What did you say?" Bickson shouted back.

"You heard me!"

"Embarassing yourself wasn't enough for you? You want to throw blasphemy and sacrilege on top of it, too?"

"It's true! I'm the star player of the Zanarkand Abes! Even my old man wasn't as good as me. Jecht used to be a household name! Now Tidus is on top!"

"Did you say Jecht?"

"Yeah! That was my old man's name! What's it to you?"

Bickson seemed uncharacteristically quiet. He whispered to his nearby teammates before responding. "You don't mean Sir Jecht, guardian to Lord Braska, do you? You don't honestly expect me to believe that you are the son of one of the greatest guardians this world has ever seen, do you?"

Tidus was momentarily silenced by the use of his father's name in a positive context. That couldn't be the same Jecht. He would never guard anyone else. Besides, Tidus' old man was dead. "I don't know what you're talking about. My old man disappeared ten years ago. He went out for training and never returned."

Once again, Bickson discussed with his team. "Tell you what," he said. "Why don't you hang out in the lobby for a bit. I'll come and get you when I'm ready."

The doorman led him back through the glass doors and left him in the lobby. Tidus sat down and the crowd began to disperse. Rikku sat down across from him as soon as the crowd had thinned out. "What did I tell you about telling people you're from Zanarkand? And what was all that about Jecht? Where did you get that from? Where did you hear that name?"

"I was telling the truth," Tidus explained. "Jecht is my old man. I don't know anything about this guardian thing, though. My old man is dead."

"No, you said he disappeared."

"Well, when someone goes boating by themselves in a storm and they don't come back, it's safe to assume they died."

"By they might have just gone somewhere never to return," she retorted. Tidus gave her an annoyed look. "After all, the same thing happened to you."

"After I was attacked by Sin."

"Maybe Jecht didn't die. Maybe Jecht was attacked by Sin ten years ago, too. After all, Jecht defended Braska ten years ago, and people say Jecht didn't have a history in Spira, either. You have to admit, this is a pretty big coincidence for it not to be your father."

"It's not. My old man was selfish and cruel. He wouldn't have helped anyone unless he was getting something out of it."

"Maybe he was."

Tidus didn't reply. He didn't want to talk about Jecht anymore. He just wanted to know why Bickson suddenly cared what happened to him. Tidus and Rikku just waited, mostly in silence. Time ticked by very slowly, and the sun began to fade. Tidus was getting impatient. "I embarrassed myself out there. They don't need me on their team. Why am I even waiting? You said there were other human teams, right? We should go. I might have a better chance with the Beasts or the Aurochs."

Tidus stood up, and just at that moment saw Bickson with the two girls entering the lobby. "Sorry to keep you waiting," the girl with pigtails said. "Balgerda wanted to finish practice before we came to talk to you."

"I don't have time to deal with a charity case," Balgerda replied sternly. "I'm going home. Let me know what he says tomorrow." Balgerda didn't wait for a reply. She picked up her bag and left the hotel.

"What did she mean?" Tidus asked.

Bickson seemed uncomfortable with the engaging in the conversation. Tidus just looked at him until he started talking. "You're on the team."

"Why?" Rikku immediately fielded.

"What are you, his mother?"

"I'm curious, too," Tidus relied. "I was embarrassing out there. You don't need me on your team."

"You can learn blitzball," Bickson replied. "You'll get better over time. Maybe, just maybe, one day you'll be as good as me. I wouldn't hold my breath, but it's possible. You may not be a star player, but you have star power."

"Oh,"Tidus replied despondently. "I see what this is now. You think my old man was some kind of big shot, and you want to cash in on his popularity. You can count me out."

"Don't be so naive," Bickson urged. "After all, you became a blitzer just like him. Tell me. Did you play for the same team as your father?" Tidus didn't respond. "Don't tell me there wasn't at least a little bit of nepotism involved."

"I'm nobody's charity case!"

"And we don't think you are," the other girl said. "Balgerda was just being mean. She knows that she's the one most likely to get benched if we add you. She's just being jealous. You would be an integral part of the team. You would train with us. You'd get better. One day, you'll live up to that star player moniker."

"Doram, would you be quiet and let me handle this?" Bickson urged. The girl, named Doram, simply breathed an annoyed grunt and remained quiet. Bickson returned to addressing Tidus. "You have nothing. You have nowhere to go. You don't know where you came from, and you certainly don't know how to get back. Now, you are being offered the opportunity to join the most prestigious blitzball team in Spira. Are you really going to turn it down out of pride? Would you rather join some backwater team and live some quaint life in the village, or would you like to return to the stardom you apparently believe you had in your imaginary Zanarkand?"

Zanarkand is real," Tidus insisted. Bickson simply shrugged. Tius looked at Rikku, whose countenance was completely undiscoverable. He couldn't base his decision on her expectation. She didn't seem to have one. Tidus looked back at Bickson. "I won't be your mascot. I'll join, but I had better play. I don't play blitz for the perks. I play blitz to play blitz."

"Sure. You'll have your shot," Bickson assured. "Meet us at Dock 3 tomorrow at midday. We'll be heading to Kilika. Every year we go to Kilika and pray from some real competition. It's great for publicity. Don't be late."

Bickson turned and entered the stairwell. Doram followed close behind. "Come on," Rikku said. "We can't afford this place. I know an Al-Bhed friendly inn at the end of the road."

"Al-Bhed friendly?"

"Yeah. There used to be a big Al-Bhed population in Luca before my father founded Home. There are a few old timers who refused to move and are still in the old neighborhood. Al-Bhed can't get business licenses unless they sign a form promising they won't use machina in their establishment. The punishment for breaking that contract is severe, so most don't even bother. Humans don't have to sign that form, though. It's assumed humans would never use machina. Anyways, here were are. Welcome to Mily."

"Mily?"

"It's Luca in Al-Bhed. The inn is right over here. It's owned by a human, but he never comes here because he doesn't want people to know he supports the Al-Bhed. It's licensed under a fake name and he lets the Al-Bhed run it." Rikku led him into a small, two story building, where an old man was sprawled out on an armchair in the small lobby and a young man stood behind the counter. "Fa haat dfu nuusc," Rikku said.

"Fa uhmo ryja uha yjyemypma duhekrd. Y cehkma," the young man replied.

"Naymmo?"

"Naymmo."

"Looks like we'll have to go elsewhere," Rikku said to Tidus. "They only have one room."

"It's getting late," Tidus replied. "I'm getting tired. Let's just take the room."

"It's a single."

"Whatever. I'll sleep on the floor, if you prefer."

"You don't have to sleep on the floor. It's a big bed. We can share it."

Rikku motioned for the young man to give her the key. Tidus followed her upstairs and into the room. Tidus sat down at the edge of the bed while Rikku stepped into the bathroom. "I'm taking a bath. You can take one after me."

"Sure," Tidus responded. He was too exhausted to pay attention. As he heard the water run in the bathroom, Tidus slowly drifted off to sleep.


End file.
